Grant-in-aid up Rs 10 cr for Chandigarh MC

Tribune News Service

Sandeep Rana

Chandigarh, February 1

The local Municipal Corporation, which had prepared an unrealistic Budget of Rs 1,350 crore for the 2023-24 fiscal, today got only Rs 555 crore grant-in-aid (GIA) under the Union Budget announced today.

Of these Rs 1,350 cr, around Rs 600 cr were its own receipts, requiring Rs 750 crore GIA. With the Centre earmarking Rs 555 crore, the MC will have to increase its revenue to meet the shortfall.

The GIA, however, is Rs 10 crore higher than what it received last financial year. In the Union Budget for 2022-23, the House had sought Rs 981.02-cr grant-in-aid, but had got Rs 545 crore.

The MC has for past many fiscals been preparing higher budgetary proposals in the hope of getting funds as per the fourth Delhi Finance Commission’s recommendation. It had recommended increase in MC’s share in UT revenue from 17.5 per cent to 30 per cent.

All mayors have been promising to get it implemented from the Centre, but to no avail. Even present Mayor, Anup Gupta, had raised this demand with Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Banwarilal Purohit, who promised to take it up with Home Minister Amit Shah.

Earlier, then Punjab Governor VP Singh Badnore had written to the Ministry of Home Affairs in this regard, but to no avail. Now, again the MC has failed to get funds as per the demand.

Meanwhile, MC officials have said they expected higher GIA in the revised budget and would raise the issue of grant share with the Governor once again.